Summary
Highlights
A position paper presents an arguable opinion about an issue, aiming to convince the audience of the validity of your opinion. It requires careful examination of ideas, developing arguments, and addressing all sides of an issue clearly. The goal is to take one side and persuade the audience with well-founded knowledge and supporting evidence, including addressing counterclaims, similar to a debate.
To choose a strong topic, ask if it has a genuine controversy with two distinct positions and if you are personally interested in advocating one side. Ensure the issue is narrow enough to be manageable. Support your position by listing pros and cons, and gather supporting evidence such as factual knowledge, statistical inferences, informed opinions from research, and personal testimonies.
When writing, consider your audience: what they believe, their stance on the issue, how their interests are involved, and what evidence will be effective with them. For your viewpoint, ensure the topic is interesting, manageable within teacher specifications, asserts something specific, proposes a plan of action, and has enough material to support your opinion.
A standard outline for a position paper includes an introduction (introducing the topic, background, thesis, and your view), a counter-argument section (summarizing counterclaims, providing supporting info, and refuting them with evidence), your argument section (stating your opinion and providing support for each point), and a conclusion (restating your argument and providing a plan of action). While templates vary, the core components focus on making a supported stand on an issue.